Yankees starting pitcher Michael Pineda is set to begin a minor-league rehab stint. The club says it'll start Sunday and he'll need three rehab starts before returning.

The Yankees may be getting one of their four injured opening-day rotation starters back soon, as Michael Pineda got through a 45-pitch simulated game Tuesday. The next step will be for Pineda to go on a minor-league rehab stint, which will begin Sunday, when he makes his first rehab start (via MLB.com).

The level is still to be determined, but Pineda is reportedly going to need three rehab starts before the Yankees bring him back.

So a mid-August return is possible.

Pineda, 25, is 2-2 with a 1.83 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 15 strikeouts against only three walks in 19 2/3 innings this season. He hasn't seen action since being suspended following the pine tar incident in Boston on April 23 and immediately thereafter going on the disabled list with a right shoulder injury. He missed the 2012 and 2013 seasons with shoulder issues, which included surgery to repair his labrum.

The Yankees have a patchwork rotation right now, with Pineda, Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabthia and Ivan Nova on the DL. Nova and Sabathia are out for the season. Brandon McCarthy and Chris Capuano have been acquired via trades.

Matt Snyder has been a baseball writer with CBS Sports since 2011. A member of the BBWAA, he's now covered the last six World Series beginning with the epic 2011 Fall Classic. The former Indiana University...
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